Taiwan is an island smaller than Switzerland. There are 23 million people there that enjoy well-developed cities, traditional towns, spectacular nature, and delicious food. Come to hike our mountains, relax on our beaches, explore the nature with internationals, aboriginals, and locals!
Many of our friends and family in Norway have never been to Taiwan. Hence, I listed several travel tips in Taiwan for you.
1. Weather
It is quite warm and humid in Taiwan.
Rainy season: May - June
Typhoon season: July - September
Winter (November to March): more rain in the north and sunny in the central and southern parts
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| Average Temperature in Chiayi |
As Taiwan has tropical weather, almost every shop, restaurant, and house has air-conditioner. Since winter in Taiwan barely reaches below 10°C, it is uncommon to have a heater inside. Hence, for those coming from Norway, you probably won't be needing more than 1 thick sweater and a wind&water proof shell jacket. We advise checking the weather forecast when packing your suitcase.
2. Undrinkable tap water
Drinking tap water in Taiwan won't kill you. But we strongly advise not to do so. You can easily buy bottled water in convenient stores or supermarkets (cheaper!). The spoiled man, Eivind, likes PH9 water the best. He claims that this brand of bottled water tastes similar to tap water in Norway.
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| 統一PH9.0 鹼性離子水 800ml |
3. Electricity & plugs
In Taiwan the power plugs and sockets are of type A and B. The standard voltage is 110 V and the standard frequency is 60 Hz.
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| Type A & Type B |
If you have more than 2 electronics need to be charged or you are traveling with your family and the electronics have 100-240V & 50/60 Hz, we suggest buying 1 converter and 1 plug outlets.
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| Converter EU to US (type A) & extended outlets |
4. Cash Cash Cash
It is possible to use your credit cards as long as it is indicated at the entrance or the cashier of the shop/restaurant, especially when you are shopping for expensive goods. Otherwise, cash will be your best friend during your trip in Taiwan. The best way to get cash will be drawing them from ATM (Minibank supported by Taiwanese banks) on the street or in the convenient stores (open 7/24). If you have to pay a fee with every cash withdraw, we suggest drawing the maximum amount to minimize the fee. If not, draw it whenever you are short on cash or if the next ATM will be hard to find.
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| ATM in convenient store |
5. Chinese Mandarin & number gestures
Many people in Taiwan know English. But that does not mean that they are confident of using it. It won't be hard finding a person who speaks English, especially when you are seeking help from the authorities. I will add a selection of useful Chinese sentences in another post. Body language is often universal. Unfortunately, we don't share the same system when it comes to numbers. So be careful NOT to ask for 7 stinky tofu when you only want 2!
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| number 1-6 |
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| number 7-9 |
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| number 10 as 1 & 0 |
6. Crosswalk alert
ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS stay alert when you are crossing a road. Unlike Norway, vehicles in Taiwan very often don't let people pass first. Don't let your guard down EVEN when you are crossing with a green light. Taiwan has 23 million people, 8 million cars, and 15 million scooters and accidents happen every single day.
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| Crosswalk alert |
7. Be adventurous with food
Taiwan is well known for its delicacies and Taiwanese people are passionate about food/eating. Some of them might appear to be weird for you. But trust me, you will not regret it for giving them a try. Also, you can find many different kinds food that's Japanese, Korean, Italian, French, Spanish, German, Mexican, Mongolian, etc.
Here are some videos that give you a glimpse of what Taiwan is offering for your stomach:
Alright. I think 4 videos are enough to show you how proud I am of our food and how serious people are about eating.
8. Everyone's lottery ticket
Whenever you make a purchase, a receipt will be given to you. Don't throw them away just yet as you might win from a couple of hundreds to millions NTD. This "reward system" was created to avoid tax frauds by encouraging customers to ask for their receipts. Since every receipt serves as a lottery ticket, it is hard to resist the possibility of being a millionaire. To check if you are the lucky one, you will have to wait till the even month followed (e.g. February, April, June, August, etc) for the lottery result. If you will only be in Taiwan for a short time, donating receipts to charity groups could possibly help them greatly. There are few cases that receipts are not provided - business owners who applied and passed to be "receipt-free", vendors who haven't reach income requirement, or some who simply commit tax fraud.
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| Receipt version 1 |
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| Receipt version 2 |
9. Protect your wallet
People in Taiwan are genuine, honest, and friendly. However, like every other country, we also have "bad people."
Case A - Overcharged
There are few street vendors in touristy areas that overcharge their customers. To avoid this situation, always agree on the price before you make the purchase when you cannot find a price tag. If you find it hard to communicate the numbers, pulling out the calculator on your phone is the easiest way.
Case B - Pay more than market value
This is a tricky one as only locals or people who have stayed in Taiwan long enough are familiar with the market value of the goods or service. In this case, shop around a bit. Haggle or ask stranger Taiwanese for their opinion. Remember, no one can force your money out without your permission.
Case C - Detour Taxi
Simply take out your google map when hopping on a taxi. This can, to a certain degree, prevent the taxi driver from taking detours to get more money out of you. Or you can use Uber as the route and the price were set in advance. If you haven't had Uber before (or that you want to create a new account with your new Taiwanese SIM card,) you can get a discount when ordering your first Uber by using this code: 76yf9qfuue or by registering via this link.
Case D - Scammy hostels
This is not usual but it is not unheard of that some hostel owners demand more money than agreed when the guests are checking out. To avoid this unpleasant situation, book your stay via booking platforms such as Airbnb. If you don't have an Airbnb account yet, register with this link to save up to USD 50 on your first booking via Airbnb.
Case E - Compensation for "damages"
Been asked to pay for former damages when returning the rental vehicles? I believe this could also happen in your home country. To prevent this, take photos of the damages before taking over the vehicles. Sent an email to yourself as backup & extra proof of time-frame.
10. Explore!
"A picture is worth a thousand words." How about videos?
10. Explore!
"A picture is worth a thousand words." How about videos?
Mountain and Forest Activities
Water Activities
Nature
Culture
Photos and videos taken from the Internet. I take no credit.
